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Ford's Exit Down Under

Australians have paid again and again for car tariffs.

May 27, 2013 11:39 a.m. ET

Speaking of industrial policy and the auto industry (see above), Ford announced Thursday that it will stop manufacturing cars in Australia as of October 2016. The move comes despite Canberra's repeated, and expensive, attempts to keep the auto industry afloat. There's a lesson here for other governments.

Ford's Australian operations are being cited as a victim of the currency wars. As central bankers flood the globe with cheap money, exchange rates in some economies have appreciated sharply. This is especially so for...